Ferris Wheels
by lyatttrash
Summary: Will and Frankie go on the Ferris wheel. Frankie harbors a secret fear for them. Prompt response to missthang616


_AN: I'm responding to a prompt from Missthang616, I hope I did your idea justice! I'm so excited for the finale tonight but I'm also incredibly sad that this is the (hopefully not fingers crossed) last episode:( _

"So," Will said handing the perp off to the LAPD, the two watched a pair of officers load him into the back of their car. He turned back to Frankie with a doofy smile on his face, "about that Ferris wheel?"

"Yeah what about it?" Frankie shrugged. She tried to act unbothered but Will's smile made her stomach do that flip flopping thing. It's been doing that a lot lately around him

"You said we could go." Will said matter of factly.

"Did I?" Frankie clicked her tongue.

"Yeah, ya did." Will nodded raising and eyebrow at her expectantly. "Unless you're afraid." Will teased with a smirk. The smile dropped slightly from Frankie's face, she bit her lip and looked behind her at all the carnival rides. It's not that she didn't want to go, she really did. She _really, really _did. It's just that it looked so _tall_, and so close to the edge of the pier. _Was that even allowed? _Frankie took a deep breath, squaring her shoulders.

"No I'm not." She said a little too forcefully, praying Will didn't pick up on it, thankfully he didn't. Ever since she could remember she's been weary of tall places . There was no specific reason it was just a thing she's dealt with most of her life. _If humans were supposed to be that high we would have wings. _Oddly enough she wasn't afraid of flying. It was more mental than anything, at least in an airplane she couldn't _see _that she was 35,000 feet in the air. But a Ferris wheel? _Is it too late to back out? _

"Yes! Let's go!" Will cheered grabbing her by the arm and pulling her onto the path towards all the rides. As they walked Frankie noticed that Will didn't let go of her arm. Was she just imagining it or was he slowly inching his hand down her forearm towards her own hand? Frankie pretended she didn't notice, wanting to see how far he would go. Why did everywhere he touch leave her skin on fire? She was surprised when his hand tentatively wrapped around her wrist, she surprised herself even more when she reached up and carded her fingers through his. She didn't dare meet his eye but she felt him give her hand a light squeeze in response. Frankie felt herself blush and her hand not occupied by Will's came up to her face to nervously tuck a hair behind her ear. They walked in a comfortable silence and all Frankie could think about was how _nice _his hand felt in hers. She could feel the rough calluses of his trigger fingers against the back of her hand, she was sure she had the same, complimented by the warm softness of his palm. Frankie never bought into that puzzle piece 'we were made for each other' crap but she couldn't help but notice how perfectly their hands fit together.

"Two tickets please." Frankie had been so lost in her thoughts that she hadn't even noticed that they reached the ticket booth. She also noticed that Will still hasn't let go of her hand, her lips involuntarily quirked up into a smile at the realization. "Uh Frankie…"

"Hm?" she was confused about why he was just staring at her.

"I uh kinda need two hands to pay for the tickets." He said sheepishly and Frankie turned beet red quickly dropping his hand.

"Oh yeah right totally, I'll… go get us a place in line." Frankie quickly turned on her heel before Will could say anything. _What the hell was that?! They held hands, they don't hold hands. And why was she so upset that she had to let go? _Frankie huffed reaching the end of the line. This is why she didn't let herself get close to people, especially people she works with, because then things get blurry and confusing. She didn't like burry and confusing, she needed things to be crystal clear. Blurry and confusing is how people get hurt. Frankie jumped when she felt a hand on her back.

"Woah easy," Will chuckled, he dropped his hand and Frankie instantly missed the feeling of it, "you ran away like a bat out of hell I didn't give you a chance to give you your ticket." He held her ticket out, Frankie tried to ignore the spark that went through her when their fingers grazed each other. As they stood in line again Frankie secretly hoped that Will would reach for her hand again, she was disappointed when he didn't. They reached the front of the line and Frankie then realized what a huge mistake she just made. The Ferris wheel looked ten times taller up close, and with only a metal bar stopping her from falling to her death she swallowed hard. It wasn't that she was _scared _of heights, no Frankie Trowbridge isn't afraid of anything, she just has a very healthy desire to stay on the ground. She looked at Will and saw how excited he was, she couldn't tell him she didn't like heights because he would pull them out of line in a heartbeat. She didn't want to, _couldn't_, be the one to crush his joy.

"Next!" The ride attendant called, it was a teenage kid who looked like he would rather be anywhere else. _You and me both kid_. Will practically jumped into the cart as soon as the teenager opened the door. Frankie nervously got in after him, and if she sat a little closer to him than necessary or refused to relinquish her death grip on the very small metal bar then that was just a coincidence. The ride jerked forward and Frankie swallowed a gasp, squeezing the bar that much tighter.

"Wow Frankie look at that it's beautiful!" Will said in awe, he had one arm draped across the back of the bench and his other hanging off the side. Frankie's heart rate sped up just looking at him, one wrong move and he would probably just slip right out of the cart.

"Mhm." Frankie agreed quickly without opening her mouth, looking anywhere but down.

"Look at the ocean! You can see for miles, and look at the water crashing against the rocks and oh beach volleyball!" Will was rambling off everything he was seeing like a little kid. Frankie had to admit it was beautiful, it was just hard to enjoy it when all she could focus on was all the ways she could possibly die. She closed her eyes, took a deep breath through her nose and exhaled slowly through her mouth.

"Yeah." Was all she could manage to get out, she felt like the height stole all the air from her lungs.

"Oh when we're done we have to get a- hey are you okay?" Will asked when he saw Frankie squeezing her eyes shut.

"Yeah." She said again quickly still not opening her eyes. Will stared at her for a minute before chuckling.

"Oh my god! Are you- are you afraid of heights?!" He teased. "How did I not know this?" he asked himself. "Seriously Frankie Trowbridge, the girl who could kill you eight different ways with her thumb, is afraid of heights!"

"Will…" Frankie said so quietly she didn't know if he could hear her over the wind. This was such a bad idea. She tried to be brave and do something nice for him and he's mocking her. This is why she likes to work alone; she could always put herself first. He must have sensed the pleading in her tone and his expression instantly softened.

"You really are scared," he asked softly, touching his hand to the side of her shoulder. She didn't answer him but her shaky breaths gave her away. Then as if the world was conspiring against her the ride jerked and came to a halt, right at the top. The sudden stop caused the carts to sway and Frankie started hyperventilating. She gripped the bar until her entire hand turned white, she was breathing really hard yet couldn't seem to get any air to her lungs. There was a ringing in her ears and she could have sworn she heard someone shouting her name. "Frankie. Frankie, Frankie!" she finally located the sound, it was coming from Will. She turned to him and saw the concern in his eyes. "You're okay, you're fine. Just look at me, okay? Focus on my eyes and take deep breaths. Okay, ready, in and out. Good! Okay in and back out." Will's calm voice helped her get her breathing under control. She took deep breaths with him as she stared into his impossibly green eyes. She started to loosen her grip on the bar, she then noticed that her left hand wasn't holding on to the bar, she was squeezing the life out of Will's hand. She blushed profusely and quickly let go.

"Sorry." She mumbled.

"I don't mind." He had such a genuine smile that Frankie wanted to scream. How come someone be so _good. _Just honest to god good. The cart still swayed a bit and Frankie closed her eyes again. "Hey Frankie?" he asked softly after a moment of silence.

"Yeah?" she replied in the same tone.

"If you're this afraid of heights why did you come on the ride?" There wasn't an ounce of accusation in his voice. Frankie paused a little bit before answering.

"You're always doing nice things for me," she exhaled before continuing, "I guess I just wanted to do something nice for you." She mumbled the last part, gripping the bar tighter. "You always put me first so I thought this one time I thought I would put you first, horrible idea on my part not gonna lie." She gave a self-deprecating laugh to try and lighten the mood she created with her confession

"That's very sweet of you Frankie but I don't want to go on the ride if it makes you this uncomfortable. I want us both to enjoy the experience." He looked around and took a deep breath, "I never told anyone this but I'm wildly claustrophobic." Frankie raised an eyebrow at him silently urging him to continue. "My um brother and sister locked me in the garden shed when we were kids as a prank. It wasn't a big shed, probably about seven by seven. But it was jam packed with stuff so the walking space was only like three by four. They uh… forgot that I was in there, I was sitting there by myself for hours, eventually it got dark. Each breath I took seemed to make the walls shift in inch by inch. My mom was a doctor; she came home from a double shift and was furious to find me outside. Ever since then I never did well in tight spaces. My vision blurs, my breathing gets shallow and I have to work to find something to ground me." Frankie could hear the pain in his voice of retelling his bad childhood experience. Frankie wanted to comfort him but she physically couldn't move. "It's gonna be okay Frankie we're gonna get through this. We just need to find something that grounds you." Frankie couldn't speak but she nodded in response. His arm brushed against her back when he shifted slightly in his seat. Just the small movement caused the cart to rock back and forth again and Frankie started to panic, looking to Will with wide eyes. "Hey, you're okay." He paused for a minute, "do you trust me?"

"More than anyone." Her answer was so immediate she didn't even have time to think about it before the words came tumbling out of her mouth. She was surprised at her honesty. Looking at the expression on his face, Will was too.

"Okay then, take my hand." He held his hand out palm up inches from the one currently making dents into the bar. She tried to move her hand but it twitched when she made an attempt to let go.

"I- I can't" her voice cracked and she couldn't even feel the embarrassment over how scared she was.

"Okay new plan, I'm gonna really need you to trust me." His delivery was slow and Frankie was terrified that she wasn't going to like what came next. "The cart will swing less if we're both in the middle so I'm just gonna scooch over to you." _Yep definitely didn't like it. _Frankie frantically shook her head no. "Frankie, you said you trusted me, now it's time to show me you do." His voice was soft and patient waiting for Frankie to give the go ahead before he moved an inch. She nodded her head, closed her eyes and prepared for the worst. The cart swayed a little more than earlier but before Frankie had time to react Will wrapped his arms around her and she folded into his chest without a second thought. She whimpered when the cart shook. "It's okay, I've got you." His warm breath against her neck sent shivers down her spin. She buried her face deeper into his body, inhaling the clean scent of his cologne. It did wonders to calm her racing heart. Frankie was surprised at how much she liked being in Will's arm and how even more surprisingly she didn't want the ride to end.

"Thank you." She whispered into his chest and his thumb traced circles on her back in response. His hand running comfortingly up and down her back all but put her to sleep. She sighed lightly.

"I would never let anything bad happen to you. As long as I'm alive you can trust me that I'll never let anything happen to you." His voice was hard and determined, he squeezed her a little lighter and Frankie wonders if he was even aware he did it. She felt her throat close up, it's been so long since anyone has cared that much about her. She pulled her head off his chest to look at him. He looked just as much in pain as she felt. _How can one person have the capacity to care as much as Will? _She brought her hand up to graze his cheek, maybe to try and smooth away his frown lines. Frankie smiled when he leaned into her touch. She shocked them both when she leaned in and placed the lightest of kisses against his mouth, so light she wondered if she even did it. Her lips barely skimmed his yet she felt the heat take over her whole body, just like it had when she kissed him at the wedding. She thought it had been a fluke, blamed it on champagne, the alcohol was why her lips buzzed and she felt a warmth spread across her chest, it had to be. She slowly leaned away to look at him, there was an expression in his eyes that she couldn't read but she could tell he felt it too. Neither said anything, they just stared at each other. Frankie's fingertips still dancing across his cheek. They didn't dare lean in again, as badly as she wanted to. Sighing she curled back up against his chest and stared out at the ocean. His hand dropped from her shoulder to the bend where her hip met her thigh. Even through her jeans she felt the goosebumps take over her whole body.

"If you tell anyone about this I will shoot you where you stand." Frankie deadpanned, she could feel more than hear him chuckling beneath her.

"I wouldn't expect anything less." He brought his lips to the crown of her head before laying his head on top of where he just kissed. Frankie decided maybe she doesn't hate heights that much anymore, as long as Will is around. She sat contempt in Will's arms, watching the waves move leisurely in the distance.

"You." She whispered.

"Me what?"

"You ground me." Frankie held her breath, she couldn't believe she just admitted that. Her heart started to race each second that Will said nothing. She relaxed a bit when she felt Will squeeze her hip lightly in response. "Hey Will?" she asked again after a few minutes of silence.

"Yeah?"

"You um said you can't handle tight spaces but we were trapped in a body bag together, and a closet, and in between those computers and every time you were solid as a rock, I never would have guessed you didn't like small spaces." Of all the responses she was expecting to hear from him, laughing wasn't one of them. "What?" she said lifting her head to look at him. His smile and the way the light from the sunset turned his eyes a bright golden color took her breath away.

"Franks I think you're missing the common denominator in each of those scenarios." She searched his face for anything that would give away how he felt. She didn't date, she didn't get attached to people, she was in uncharted waters and had no idea how to proceed. Her first instinct was to run and run far but her brain reminded her that she was still currently 50 feet up into the air. Her heart was thumping loudly against her chest and all she could do was give him a shy smile. She froze when he started to lean down not sure what to do. He kissed the very corner of her mouth. The kiss could be classified as on her cheek but the edge of her lips burned from the contact. His lips were firm yet impossibly soft at the same time. He started to pull away and Frankie made the snap decision to turn her head, capturing his lips. He paused for a second before responding. The hand around her waist came up to rest on her neck, his thumb skimming her jawline. The kiss was gentle and hesitant but still managed to knock the air from her lungs. She sighed into his mouth and he responded kissing her a little harder. She was about to deepen the kiss when all too soon he pulled away. He rest his forehead against hers, their eyes still closed, each wanting to savor the bubble they were in. His hand lightly grazed across her cheek before combing softly through her hair. He massaged a spot just behind her ear and Frankie bit back a moan as she leaned into his touch.

"You ground me too."


End file.
